Category: Tech Tip

  • Frustrated by System Settings? Use the View Menu or Search

    Frustrated by System Settings? Use the View Menu or Search

    Frustrated by System Settings? Use the View Menu or Search In macOS 13 Ventura, Apple replaced the creaky System Preferences with System Settings, which uses a more iOS-like interface. Many people find System Settings overwhelming, partly because they had memorized where to look in System Preferences (but System Settings has many other design flaws as…

  • Frustrated by System Settings? Use the View Menu or Search

    Frustrated by System Settings? Use the View Menu or Search

    In macOS 13 Ventura, Apple replaced the creaky System Preferences with System Settings, which uses a more iOS-like interface. Many people find System Settings overwhelming, partly because they had memorized where to look in System Preferences (but System Settings has many other design flaws as well—it’s not your fault). We have two recommendations to make…

  • How to Protect Your Child’s Hearing from Too-Loud Headphone Audio

    How to Protect Your Child’s Hearing from Too-Loud Headphone Audio

    How to Protect Your Child’s Hearing from Too-Loud Headphone Audio​ By Chris Keller|Aug 01, 2023 How to Protect Your Child’s Hearing from Too-Loud Headphone Audio Loud sounds are harmful to everyone, and many parents worry that their children are at risk for hearing loss due to too-loud headphone audio from iPhones and iPads. To lower…

  • Look Up Apple Device Details in Mactracker

    Look Up Apple Device Details in Mactracker

    It’s difficult for even those who work with Apple devices daily to remember all the details. What processors were available with the 2020 iMac? What resolutions did the Apple Thunderbolt Display support? What are the differences between the fifth and sixth generations of the iPad mini? To find the answers to these and many other…

  • Keep Your Apple Devices Cool in the Summer Heat

    Keep Your Apple Devices Cool in the Summer Heat

    June 2023 was the hottest month on record for the planet, at least until July 2023. Among the many ill effects of such heat are what it does to iPhones, iPads, Macs, Apple Watches, and other digital devices. Excessive heat shortens the overall lifespan of lithium-ion batteries and increases the likelihood of both transient errors…

  • Clean Up Your Mac’s Desktop with Sort Options

    Clean Up Your Mac’s Desktop with Sort Options

    When we help someone with their Mac for the first time, we often notice that their desktop is a disaster. Icons are scattered willy-nilly and often piled on top of one another, making it hard to locate anything. For most people, the solution is easy—sort the contents of the desktop. In the Finder, choose View…

  • Consider Moving Your Mac’s Dock to the Side of the Screen

    Consider Moving Your Mac’s Dock to the Side of the Screen

    For most of us, our Mac’s screen is wider than it is tall, so longer Web pages and documents often benefit from more room from top to bottom. To maximize the amount of usable vertical space and reduce the need to scroll as much, you can set the Dock to hide automatically and appear only…

  • Convert Image Formats Directly in the Finder

    Convert Image Formats Directly in the Finder

    If you need to convert images to JPEG, PNG, or (unlikely) HEIF, try this hidden Finder feature: Control-click an image in one of those formats or other common image formats like TIFF, GIF, or PSD, and choose Quick Actions > Convert Image. A dialog lets you choose the destination format, the image size, and whether…

  • Protect Your iPhone Passcode by Using Face ID or Touch ID

    Protect Your iPhone Passcode by Using Face ID or Touch ID

    By Chris Keller|Mar 14, 2023 Protect Your iPhone Passcode by Using Face ID or Touch ID This is troubling. Joanna Stern and Nicole Nguyen of the Wall Street Journal have published an article(paywalled) and accompanying video that describes attacks on hundreds of iPhone users in major cities throughout the United States. Some attacks involve drugging…